question: after the pads are change and everything is re-installed correctly. is there play in the carrier? i.e., it can wiggle a little bit?

mine did that until I pumped the brakes a few times. hope this is normal.

Perfectly normal. Just be careful on first drive that you get the pistons to seat the pads before you take off. I just changed my pads last week and haven't driven it yet so I gotta remember this too, before I head to have my vorshlag plates set up.

Sending some love for this thread. I changed my pads over today and found the guide to be perfect. Getting the clips off was easy, the front i simply stuck a screwdriver into the middle clip and it flew off, the rear I stuck my screwdriver into one of of the holes and pried it off and the rest came out easy. The hardest part I found was the damn sliding caliper bolts - not much room to manouver in there. Oh and the pads I put on didn't have any retaining clips so getting the caliper back on was a bit tricky without having the pads fall out.

I made this video clip and posted it in the brake section. People were very confused as to how to retract the stock caliper's piston. Ironically nobody seemed to care after I posted this. Oh well, perhaps it'll help some people here!

Wow! Thanks! I never thought about using the carrier for leverage with a screwdriver. I always use a C-clamp as shown in the first post. Then I follow up with a caliper push back tool like this one to go all the way (for new pads).

Great idea! I will try 2 screw drivers concurrently on each side for symmetrical force application.

Wow! Thanks! I never thought about using the carrier for leverage with a screwdriver. I always use a C-clamp as shown in the first post. Then I follow up with a caliper push back tool like this one to go all the way (for new pads).

Great idea! I will try 2 screw drivers concurrently on each side for symmetrical force application.

This will definitely make my swaps faster.

+1 screwdrivers work well. Much faster. Great thread. I wish I had read this sooner. I had to figure things out on my own.

I was swapping my rear pads and had no problems removing the 2 pins but I just couldn't screw them back in once the pads had been swapped. I tried swapping pin positions (top / bottom) but neither of them screwed back easily. I even tried screwing them without the calipher being on to see if they screwed in straight and had no luck. They became stuck halfway in and seemed to be on an angle that wasn't 90 degrees to the rotor.

I cleaned the carrier holes with a cloth and q tips. There was quite a bit of brake pad dust in there which i cleaned as best i could but that only helped a bit.

The pins weren't stripped of their thread but the threads weren't in flawless shape either.

I managed to screw them in with only 3 - 4 mm of the pin thread exposed and put plastic caps and the anti rattle clip back on. The caliper felt secure and I couldn't move it when i tried with my hand.

I'm going to have to take it to the stealership tomorrow to get it checked out I guess but I simply can't drive it far without the pins being fully in.

Question - can i drive it at all to the dealer or is it too risky with a rear caliper that's not fully secure. I suppse there's a risk the pads will stick as the caliper won't be able to slide back and forth easily but is that the worse that can happen?

I made this video clip and posted it in the brake section. People were very confused as to how to retract the stock caliper's piston. Ironically nobody seemed to care after I posted this. Oh well, perhaps it'll help some people here!

Nice video. I noticed that the pads you installed did not have clips on them. Should I just take them off as it seems that it is even easier to put the pads back on without them?

I made this video clip and posted it in the brake section. People were very confused as to how to retract the stock caliper's piston. Ironically nobody seemed to care after I posted this. Oh well, perhaps it'll help some people here!

Big thanks again!!! I tried it just now in preparation for my track event tomorrow and it worked like a charm.

Just want to clarify that this method works even if the caliper has slid below the pad carrier (i.e. if the pads are worn quite a bit). I wasn't sure about it until I tried today. There is enough gap for leverage. NO MORE C-Clamp up front! (For the rears I still need that clamp though).

Thanks for all the information in this thread. I tried a 4-corner pad swap and brake fluid bleed recently. I had trouble getting the front clips back in, but the following DIY series was somewhat helpful on that too: http://www.e90post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=613337

It took me waaaayyy to long to get through the job this time, but the first time is always the slow time.

The pads I was pulling only had 4200 miles on them (new car). Be forewarned, the front outside pads are glued into the caliper with something really strong. You will need to forcibly separate them from the caliper. I had to use a pry bar as a wedge and get it started with a mallet. Phew.

The pads I was pulling only had 4200 miles on them (new car). Be forewarned, the front outside pads are glued into the caliper with something really strong. You will need to forcibly separate them from the caliper. I had to use a pry bar as a wedge and get it started with a mallet. Phew.

This was mentioned in my video description along with other notes/tips

What I do to push the piston back in the caliper is simply to leave the inside brake pad on and pull the caliper against the brake disc. It will very slowly retract and it's easy to fit thicker brake pads again.
No need of a special tool or anything, imho.

What I do to push the piston back in the caliper is simply to leave the inside brake pad on and pull the caliper against the brake disc. It will very slowly retract and it's easy to fit thicker brake pads again.
No need of a special tool or anything, imho.